Obama and Bush Eulogies: The Grotesque and the Graceful

President Obama has a very serious ego problem, and when he goes off teleprompter, it sticks out like a sore thumb. His eulogy for Senator Inouye on Friday was grotesque in its focus on the speaker, not the dearly departed.Unsurprisingly, President George W. Bush delivered a graceful eulogy for Gerald R. Ford's funeral, a model from which his successor should, but will not, learn. As David Paulin points out:

A great funeral eulogy and not a single mention of "I" or "me" by President Bush. He says "us" and "we" at two points, both only in respect to the American people. Bush's speech is devoted entirely to Ford's life, character, and public service -- and he provides wonderful anecdotes that brings these things to life.

If conservatives are ever going to learn how to respond the streetfighting ways of the left's propaganda machine, now would be a perfect time. We are faced with a ruthless political-media machine that targets and takes out charismatic conservative political talent through the use of media-sponsored ridicule. Women and minorities, who threaten to appeal to constituencies the left depends upon, routinely are savaged. The onslaught faced by Sarah Palin, effectively marginalizing her as "damaged goods" for the foreseeable future, bears the unmistakable mark of a sustained campaign, including the dispatch of numerous reporters to Alaska, one of whim even moved next door to the Palin family. Marco Rubio is currently undergoing the same process, with reporters asking gotcha questions with the intent of generating a statement that can be held to ridicule, such as the attempt to get the senator to say something on the age of the earth, and classify him as a religious nut, one of the left's favorite demonization memes.

It is time to amp up the ridicule of Obama. Attach the label egotist to him, using all the tools the left has developed, from street theatre to social media. The man has supplied us with plenty of material, but the dominant media will not touch him. The public sooner or later will reevaluate the man as things get worse in his second term.

President Obama has a very serious ego problem, and when he goes off teleprompter, it sticks out like a sore thumb. His eulogy for Senator Inouye on Friday was grotesque in its focus on the speaker, not the dearly departed.

Unsurprisingly, President George W. Bush delivered a graceful eulogy for Gerald R. Ford's funeral, a model from which his successor should, but will not, learn. As David Paulin points out:

A great funeral eulogy and not a single mention of "I" or "me" by President Bush. He says "us" and "we" at two points, both only in respect to the American people. Bush's speech is devoted entirely to Ford's life, character, and public service -- and he provides wonderful anecdotes that brings these things to life.

If conservatives are ever going to learn how to respond the streetfighting ways of the left's propaganda machine, now would be a perfect time. We are faced with a ruthless political-media machine that targets and takes out charismatic conservative political talent through the use of media-sponsored ridicule. Women and minorities, who threaten to appeal to constituencies the left depends upon, routinely are savaged. The onslaught faced by Sarah Palin, effectively marginalizing her as "damaged goods" for the foreseeable future, bears the unmistakable mark of a sustained campaign, including the dispatch of numerous reporters to Alaska, one of whim even moved next door to the Palin family. Marco Rubio is currently undergoing the same process, with reporters asking gotcha questions with the intent of generating a statement that can be held to ridicule, such as the attempt to get the senator to say something on the age of the earth, and classify him as a religious nut, one of the left's favorite demonization memes.

It is time to amp up the ridicule of Obama. Attach the label egotist to him, using all the tools the left has developed, from street theatre to social media. The man has supplied us with plenty of material, but the dominant media will not touch him. The public sooner or later will reevaluate the man as things get worse in his second term.